LIbertarian candidate for Indiana Governor Rupert Boneham, center, waves to someone in the audience before the start of the first gubernatorial debate, held at the Performing Arts Center at Zionsville Community High School on Wednesday, Oct. 10, 2012. Boneham faced off against republican candidate Rep. Mike Pence, left, and Democratic candidate John Gregg, right, during the hour-long debate from 7 to 8 p.m.

Well, it was an entertaining - if not particularly informative - debate Wednesday night involving the three men who want to be the next governor of Indiana.

During the one-hour discussion at the Zionsville Performing Arts Center, Libertarian Rupert Boneham, Democrat John Gregg and Republican Mike Pence stuck largely to talking points that they've put forward throughout the campaign this year.

Pence talked about leading Indiana from "good to great," in part by building upon Gov. Mitch Daniels' economic and fiscal policies. Gregg took hard shots at Pence for his stand on social issues and his record in Congress, but the former Indiana House Speaker also emphasized his experience in government and academia and his down home personality. And Boneham, whose larger than life personality bubbled over throughout the debate, made a welcome pitch for better programs to help former prison inmates re-enter society.

Polls have consistently shown Pence with a sizeable lead heading into the debate, and nothing said Wednesday is likely to change that. Although Gregg tried to paint Pence as a Washington insider and an extremist on issues such as abortion and same-sex marriage, the debate format limited the effectiveness of those attacks. Boneham not only stood in between the two major party candidates on stage but also hindered the ability of Gregg and Pence to engage with each other one on one. In his only direct response to the Democratic challenger's criticism, Pence shot back that the General Assembly failed to balance the state budget "five of the six years" that Gregg was House Speaker.

Yet, the overall tone of the debate was understated, largely polite and, thanks to Boneham, occasionally humorous. That's not bad, of course; the hard edge of most high-stakes campaigns is exhausting. But the unwillingness - or inability - of the candidates to press below the surface and engage on deeper issues is frustrating given the enormous economic and educational challenges facing Indiana.

In 26 days, voters will elect a chief executive to lead this state for the next four years. There's still time for the candidates to lay out more precise plans for managing the state. Unfortunately, Wednesday night's debate didn't do much to fill in those details.